


so come a little closer

by pllsetskyonice (hma1313)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Bottom Yuri Plisetsky, Clubbing, DJ Otabek Altin, Dancer Katsuki Yuuri, Dancer Phichit Chulanont, Dancer Yuri Plisetsky, First Kiss, First Meetings, Getting Together, M/M, Rating May Change, Summer, Top Otabek Altin, Yuri has hot neighbours and can't deal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2018-09-10
Packaged: 2019-04-26 00:49:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14390661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hma1313/pseuds/pllsetskyonice
Summary: Yuri only opens his bedroom window to get some fresh air in. He doesn't expect to find out that his hot neighbours are sitting shirtless in the garden next door, and he certainly doesn't expect to get invited over.





	1. rollercoaster

**Author's Note:**

> apparently this is my way of dealing with the heatwave that we're having in the UK at the moment enjoy
> 
> this can also be [read on tumblr](http://pllsetskyonice.tumblr.com/post/173171687264/so-come-a-little-closer) if you prefer.
> 
>  **edit 26/5:**  
>  \- now multi chaptered! tags and rating are subject to change.  
> \- now with a [snazzy playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/1137864142/playlist/2UV6BTJFvH5ya7uUgjkmCH?si=hTa1qhvHTQeVYkcUx_mp0w)

Seriously, fuck this weather.

It’s day two of a heatwave that’s come out of nowhere after weeks of nothing but grey skies and rain, temperatures soaring on the thermometer and each day dubbed ‘hottest day of the year so far’ on the weather forecast. Logically, Yuri knows he should be happy that it’s nice and sunny and that he doesn’t have to spend his life dressed in a hoodie with the heating on, but Yuri doesn’t deal particularly well with heat. He never has. He’s better than he used to be, for sure – when he was little he used to get absolutely beside himself when summer came around – but he still reaches for the factor fifty every time the weather forecast predicts temperatures above twenty degrees.

He gets up leisurely, has a shower, gets dressed, changes his bedsheets, opens the blinds. His bedroom is at the back of the house he shares with Mila and Georgi, and his window is practically the length of one entire wall. It’s not a great view, just of the backs of the houses that back onto theirs and the gardens of the houses either side, but the light is always great in his bedroom, so Yuri isn’t complaining.

He doesn’t particularly plan to leave the house today, but supposes he should at least to attempt to get some fresh air, so he opens the window. In doing so, he happens to glance across to the garden next door, and –

_Oh._

Sitting on chairs soaking up the sun’s rare appearance, sipping from drinks and listening to music, are a couple of guys. Topless guys. _Hot_ topless guys.

Perhaps this weather isn’t so bad after all.

Yuri’s aware he has neighbours, sure, but he’s barely seen them apart from if they’ve been leaving the house at the same time to go to uni or put the bins out. He’s never met them. And he certainly never knew that they were so attractive.

Hot or not, he probably shouldn’t be staring, so Yuri scoots away from the window and frantically texts Mila.

> **11:23 WE HAVE HOT NEIGHBOURS**
> 
> **11:23 WHY HAVE WE NEVER MET THEM**
> 
> 11:25 ohhh are you talking about jj and otabek?
> 
> **11:25 if they’re the ones that live to the right of our house then yes**
> 
> 11:25 yeah that’s them
> 
> **11:26 BITCH YOU KNOW THEM? WTF WHY HAVEN’T YOU INTRODUCED ME?**
> 
> 11:27 I barely know them, I met them once at a party through a mutual friend
> 
> 11:27 you should go over!
> 
> **11:28 absolutely not**
> 
> **11:28 that’s weird**
> 
> 11:29 so you’re just going to sit in your room and stare creepily out your window at them instead?
> 
> **11:30 I’m not staring thank you very much**
> 
> 11:31 you sure?
> 
> **11:31 …at the moment**
> 
> 11:32 knew it haha
> 
> 11:32 seriously though, you should go over, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind
> 
> **11:33 I’m not convinced**

Yuri sighs and puts his phone down, moving back over to the window. They’re still there, and Yuri can hear the music they’re playing faintly through his open window. They’re still there with their dark hair styled with undercuts and their toned muscles and their abs, and – oh shit.

One of the guys is looking back him.

Every fibre of his being wants to run away from the window, leave the house, the city, the country, the world, but something makes him stay put. The guy exchanges a look with the other one and stands up, walking over to the fence that separates their two gardens.

“Hey!” he yells. “You busy?”

“No,” Yuri calls back. “Why?”

“You want to come over?”

Yuri doesn’t even hesitate. “Okay!”

“Great!” the guy yells. “Bring drinks, yeah?”

“Sure!” Yuri gets up and starts shoving things into a bag, namely his phone, the two half full bottles of flavoured vodka he’s got lying around and some lemonade. He quickly slips on some shoes, runs downstairs and out of the door. He walks down the drive and up next door’s, going down the side of the house to the gate that leads to the back garden. The gate is a wrought iron affair, so they see him coming, the guy who yelled at him across the fence wandering over to unlatch it for him.

“Hey,” Yuri says as he walks into their back garden. “Thanks for inviting me over.”

“No worries,” the guy says. “Shouldn’t be sitting inside on a beautiful day like this. I’m JJ, this is Otabek.”

The other guy – Otabek, Yuri mentally corrects – gets up from his chair to greet him. Now that he’s looking at them up close rather than through a decidedly grubby window, Otabek definitely is, at least in Yuri’s opinion, the hotter of the two. “Hey,” Otabek says. “It’s nice to meet you, um…”

“Yuri,” Yuri supplies. “It’s nice to meet you too.”

They look at each other for a few moments, Otabek’s dark eyes seeming like they’re intently searching for something in Yuri’s own. Behind them, JJ clears his throat rather pointedly. “Do I need to leave you two alone?” he asks. Otabek breaks from Yuri’s gaze, going over to sit back down on his chair again.

“No,” Otabek replies. “I think we’re good for now.”

 _For now._ Yuri smirks at that, then remembers that he’s brought drinks over. He takes his bag off his shoulder and pulls out the bottles. “Where do you want…?”

JJ directs him to a cooler sitting in the shade by the back door. He gets Yuri a chair and they all sit down together, discussing what they’re studying, where they’re from, what their housemates are like. Their housemate Leo, Yuri discovers, has gone to the supermarket with his boyfriend Guang Hong to pick up barbecue supplies and more drinks. A few other people are coming over later, apparently, once they’re out of work or uni.

Yuri decides that he should probably put some sunscreen on to save his pale skin from getting burnt, so reaches for his bag and pulls out the bottle. He quickly squirts some out and starts rubbing it into his skin, trying to make sure he isn’t left with any smears of white left on his skin. Once he’s done, he puts the bottle away and sits back in his chair, but not before he notices that Otabek is looking at him a little oddly.

“What?” Yuri asks.

“You missed a bit,” Otabek replies. “Here – let me –” he reaches out and wipes away a smear of sunscreen that Yuri didn’t manage to get rubbed in on his face. “There you go.”

“Thanks,” Yuri mumbles, giving Otabek a shy smile. Otabek gives him a small smile in return and they stay just simply looking at each other for a while and Yuri is convinced that yes, there’s definitely something between them.

There’s the sound of the gate opening and voices coming around the side of the house, making Yuri break away from Otabek’s gaze. Two guys appear, evidently Leo and Guang Hong from the barbecue supplies they’re carrying. They share greetings with everyone and start setting up the barbecue, JJ wandering over to help out.

Otabek gets up and walks over to the table by the back door, where a laptop and a set of speakers are placed. He scrolls through the music library, queuing up a few more songs before taking his phone out of his pocket and throwing it in Yuri’s direction, which Yuri just manages to catch by the tips of his fingers. “Add some songs to the playlist,” he says. “Whatever you like.”

The phone is unlocked, so Yuri immediately starts scrolling through Otabek’s extensive music collection, adding a couple of songs here and there. It’s a vast library, songs and albums from all different genres and artists and time periods, everything from classics like Bohemian Rhapsody to obscure indie bands Yuri’s never heard of before.

“You like your music, then?” Yuri asks as he passes Otabek’s phone back.

“Yeah,” Otabek replies. “It’s what I’m doing my degree in and I DJ in my spare time.”

“You have a club night, that’s hardly just doing it in your spare time,” Leo says with a roll of his eyes. “Bet you’re gonna be famous one day.”

“You have a club night?” Yuri asks. When Otabek uttered the phrase ‘I DJ in my spare time’, Yuri had visions of him playing shitty student house parties pretending like he’s the next Hardwell or something, but no, Otabek is far away from the stereotype of the wannabe student DJ. “Seriously?”

“Yeah, I do,” Otabek says. “Thursdays at GOLDEN. You should come along, I’ll add you to the guestlist.”

At the same time Yuri says, “That’d be nice”, there’s a chorus of indignant shouts from over by the barbecue, all of them sounding rather unimpressed.

“What the _fuck_ , Beka –”

“- number of times we’ve asked to be added to the guestlist –”

“- oh no, it’s fine, we’ll just carry on paying entry like plebs –”

“- just because you want to get in his –”

“Guys!” Otabek shouts. “Calm down, would you? I’ll try and get you added as well.”

JJ, Leo and Guang Hong go back to the barbecue and Yuri turns to Otabek with a suspicious look on his face. “Are you actually going to add them?”

“We’ll see,” Otabek shrugs. “They’re not special like you are.”

Yuri feels himself blush.

He blames it on the sun.

* * *

Later that evening, when the sun has gone down and all that’s left of the barbecue is a pile of ash, Yuri decides it’s probably time he made a move back to his own house. He starts to collect together his things, leaving behind the now empty bottles of vodka he brought over for them to put in their recycling. JJ has gone over to his girlfriend’s and Leo and Guang Hong are at the other end of the garden lying on a blanket looking at the stars or some other ridiculously sappy shit, so it’s just Otabek Yuri has to say goodbye to.

“You going home?” Otabek asks when he notices Yuri putting his things back into his backpack.

“Yeah,” Yuri replies. “I’ve had a really nice day, though.”

“Me too.” They stand in silence for a moment, neither of them wanting to say goodbye. “Can I get your number?”

Yuri quickly keys his number into Otabek’s phone, ringing himself so he’s got Otabek’s number too. “Guess I’ll see you around, then.” Yuri turns to go, starting to walk towards the gate, when –

“Wait.” Otabek grabs hold of his hand and Yuri turns back to face him. “You can’t go yet.”

Yuri doesn’t even get the chance to ask why because Otabek’s kissing him and this is everything Yuri has wanted all day and more. It’s a perfect first kiss, lasting just the right amount of time, Otabek running his fingers through Yuri’s long hair.

“I’ll text you,” Otabek murmurs when the kiss is over. “See you on Thursday, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Yuri says with a smile. “See you Thursday.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/pllsetskyonice) / [tumblr](http://pllsetskyonice.tumblr.com/)


	2. in a thousand ways

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> giving the people what they want (?) with a second chapter and more to follow. I haven't written chaptered fic in a while so this is going to be a wild ride for all of us! I hope you all enjoy the continuation of the original fic.
> 
> I also [made a playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/1137864142/playlist/2UV6BTJFvH5ya7uUgjkmCH?si=hTa1qhvHTQeVYkcUx_mp0w) for this, give it a listen if you like!

Yuri doesn’t hear from Otabek for a couple of days. He briefly considers making the first move by sending a short text message, but everything he types out either sounds desperate or whiny or both. So he backspaces it all and instead spends what could quite possibly be an unhealthy amount of time staring at his phone, waiting for it to light up with a message from Otabek.

It eventually comes on Tuesday evening, when Yuri is sitting in the living room with Mila, binge watching some trashy reality TV show on Netflix. He scrambles for his phone as soon as it buzzes with a message on the coffee table, his frantic movements not going unnoticed by her.

“Who is it?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.

“No one.”

Mila splutters with disbelief. “I find it hard to believe that no one would have you reaching for your phone so fast like you’re turning off an alarm that’s going off at 7am on a Monday.”

Yuri is silent for a moment. “Okay, fine, it’s one of the guys from next door,” he reluctantly admits as he unlocks his phone to read the message.

> **Otabek**
> 
> **20:12 Hey sorry I didn’t text you sooner but I just wanted to let you know you’re on the guestlist for Thursday, would love it if you could come along :)**

“You mean Otabek, the guy that kissed you before you left?”

Yuri feels his cheeks redden. “…Maybe.”

“What did he say?” Mila shuffles down the couch to where Yuri’s sitting, reading the message over his shoulder. “Ahh, that’s so cool! You’re going, right?”

“Of course.”

> 20:13 Consider me there, I can’t wait!

“Can I come?”

> **20:14 Great! You can bring a couple of friends by the way, don’t want you to be sitting in VIP by yourself**

“I was gonna say no but it seems like you can,” Yuri says, showing Mila the message.

Mila squeals, giving Yuri an awkward one armed hug. “This is so cool, Yuri! I can’t wait! Ooh, will you let me pick out your outfit if Georgi does your makeup? Please?”

“Like you’d have it any other way.”

* * *

Come Thursday evening, Georgi and Mila are both in Yuri’s bedroom, all of them getting ready together. There’s some premade Spotify party playlist playing from the speakers on Yuri’s laptop, Mila is rifling through Yuri’s wardrobe looking for outfit possibilities, chucking options on the floor at random, and Georgi is sorting through various eyeshadow palettes, searching for the perfect combination. Yuri sits crossed legged on his desk chair, currently dressed in nothing but his boxers and a ratty old festival t-shirt, pouring them all drinks. He passes the glasses to his housemates, who both accept them with a muttered “thanks.”

“Hey, Yuri, I think I’ve found it,” Mila says, holding up the latest garment she’s taken out of his wardrobe. It’s a sleeveless black shirt, the back cut up into holes and the front boasting an x shaped out of silver sequins. “Yes, this is it.”

Yuri stares at the shirt. It’s a top he bought on a whim a couple of years ago for no other reason than he thought it looked cool, but he’s never had many opportunities to wear it until now. “You think they’ll let me in wearing that?”

Mila rolls her eyes. “The DJ put you on the guestlist, I think you could get away with wearing pretty much anything within reason. If you’re that bothered, you can wear a jacket.” She throws the top and his tightest pair of skinny jeans over to him. “Get dressed.”

He obediently puts on the clothes, then sits down on the floor so Georgi can do his makeup. The palette Georgi’s chosen is full of silvers and sparkly blacks, and although if Yuri attempted it himself he’d probably look like a panda or a member of an emo band from 2006, he knows Georgi is talented with an eyeshadow brush and he’ll look absolutely flawless for his Instagrams by the time Georgi’s done.

Georgi carefully applies the makeup to Yuri’s face, effortlessly blending out the contour and eyeshadow. The winged eyeliner takes him mere seconds, the line crisp and even throughout. He even applies false lashes, not crazy dramatic ones but ones that add a bit more to the look whilst still looking natural. The lipstick he goes for is more of a subtle tone, one that won’t draw attention away from the striking eye makeup.

When he’s done, Georgi sits back, looking impressed with himself. He takes a few quick shots for his own Instagram before letting Yuri turn round to face Mila.

“Oh my god, you look gorgeous,” Mila says with a gasp. “You’re going to take his breath away.”

* * *

The club is one of the nicer ones in the city. It’s not super exclusive with a strict dress code and drinks you have to take out a second mortgage to pay for, but at the same time, it’s not some grimy hole of a student nightclub with ridiculously cheap drinks. Yuri’s never been to GOLDEN before tonight, but as soon as they step into the club and are led towards their table where there’s both a bottle of champagne and a bottle of vodka along with pitchers of mixers and glasses waiting, he feels like it’s somewhere he might frequent more often.

Mila pops the cork on the champagne, pouring it into the waiting glasses. She’s a little overeager with her pouring and some of the golden liquid overflows onto the table.

“Oops,” she says with a giggle, wiping at liquid with her hand. It doesn’t really do anything apart from spread the champagne further across the table, but Yuri decides not to chastise her for it. “Cheers, everyone!”

They clink their glasses together, Yuri managing to capture the perfect Boomerang for his Insta story on the first try. He tags the location and Georgi and Mila’s accounts, and then, as an afterthought, adds a caption.

> _Looking forward to @otabek-altin’s set tonight!_

He posts it to his story and locks his phone. He’s not expecting Otabek to see it any time soon, he’s probably busy setting up. Plus he already liked Yuri’s pre-going out Instagram post from earlier which showed Yuri posing at the end of the hall in his bedroom doorway with a drink in hand. It’s the exact same post that so many other people on his Instagram have posted tonight, all with similar captions, but Otabek hadn’t liked any of theirs, he’d only liked Yuri’s.

To his surprise, though, barely within five minutes of him posting to his Insta story, his phone lights up with an Instagram notification.

> **_otabek-altin replied to your story_ **

Yuri sets down his glass of champagne and opens the notification.

> **_I’m looking forward to seeing you tonight :)_ **
> 
> _Come and find me after you’ve finished your set then_
> 
> **_Oh I was planning to ;)_ **

Yuri grins and sets his phone down on the table. The DJ currently on stage is wrapping up his set, everyone on the dancefloor below cheering as he fades out the last song. There’s a couple of filler songs and then the lights change and the first notes of an intro start playing through the speakers.

Otabek commands the room, the crowd dancing and jumping and singing along to his mixes. It’s incredible to watch, and clear to anyone with half a brain that Otabek is talented at what he does. Yuri wouldn’t be surprised if Otabek starts doing the festival circuit before too long, slowly working his way up to headlining act.

Yuri takes a couple of videos for his Insta story, his favourite the one where he captures the moment where Otabek builds everything up to the biggest drop of the night so far and the crowd have never looked so energised.

Mila and Georgi seem to be having a good time too, swaying in their seats to the beat as they sip their drinks. Yuri watches Otabek in absolute wonderment, amazed at everything Otabek is putting into his performance. He looks incredibly concentrated, spending most of his time looking down at the decks than up at the crowd. A remix of a popular chart tune fades into the introduction of the next, and Otabek picks up the microphone that he’s neglected for most of the night.

“This is my new song, it’s called In A Thousand Ways,” Otabek says. He goes to put the microphone down, but then, almost like an afterthought, he brings it back up to his lips. “Yuri, this one’s for you.”

Yuri is stunned. He stares at Otabek from across the room in disbelief, eyes wide. “What the – Mila, what’s he _doing_?” he turns round to Mila, who’s sitting there with a grin on her face. “What are you smiling at?”

“I think someone’s trying to impress you,” Mila says in a sing-song voice reminiscent of primary school playground teasing.

“Definitely,” Georgi agrees. “Listen to the lyrics, Yuri.”

Yuri listens. It’s a love song, the subject nothing all that different to several of the songs Otabek has already played tonight, but because of the dedication, every word seems to carry new meaning. For a brief second, Otabek manages to catch his eye across the room, and they share a smile.

“Mila,” Yuri says, “Mila, I’m gay.”

Mila chuckles. “That’s really not news, Yuri.”

* * *

It’s three am when Otabek’s set ends, and that’s when the lights go up and everyone starts drunkenly shuffling out of the club, heading towards taxis and takeaways. It’s freezing outside, and Yuri starts to regret not bringing a jacket as he stands on the pavement with Mila and Georgi, waiting for Otabek to finish packing up and get out of the club.

They luckily don’t have to wait too long, Otabek appearing way sooner than Yuri thought he would, a laptop bag swung over his shoulder as he says goodnight to the bouncers and makes his way over to the three of them.

“Hey,” Otabek says. “Did you enjoy that?”

“You were amazing,” Mila replies. “Everyone was loving it. Don’t you think, Yuri?”

“Yeah, it was incredible,” Yuri says, arms wrapped tightly around himself as he tries to keep warm.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Otabek smile, then looks at Yuri with a concerned frown on his face. “Not that you don’t look stunning in that outfit Yuri, because you do, but can I please give you my jacket? Because you also look freezing.”

Otabek passes his laptop case to Georgi to hold as he takes off his jacket to give to Yuri, who puts it on with a muttered “Thanks.” It’s a thick leather jacket that cocoons Yuri in warmth and a wave of Otabek’s scent as he slips it on. Yuri catches sight of himself in a passing cab window and wonders if he can borrow the jacket on a more long term basis, because even if he does say so himself it really suits him. It looked slightly better when it was still on Otabek, granted, but this is easily a close second.

“You want to share a taxi back?” Mila asks. “Seeing as you live right next door and all.”

“Sure,” Otabek agrees, and Mila makes quick work of finding them a taxi. Yuri ends up in the middle, Mila to one side and Otabek to the other, Georgi sitting in one of the seats that faces backward. Yuri subtly shifts himself to he’s leaning against Otabek’s side, a move he can tell doesn’t go unnoticed due to the small smile that appears on Otabek’s face.

The taxi ride seems to pass quickly, the streets nearly empty in the early hours of the morning. Before long, they’re out of the city centre and driving towards the suburbs where they live. They split the taxi bill between the four of them when it pulls up on the road between their two driveways and then they get out of the taxi, stepping into the cool night time air.

The taxi pulls away and the four of them hover awkwardly at the fence that sits between their two properties, no one really wanting to the first one to say goodnight.

“Well, this has been fun,” Mila says eventually, “but I think I’m going to turn in. You’ve got the keys, right, Georgi?”

“Yeah,” he says, the two of them walking up the drive towards the front door. “Bye!”

As soon as the door closes, Otabek steps towards Yuri and pulls him into a kiss. Yuri’s eyes flutter shut as Otabek’s lips move against his and Otabek’s hand slip under his top to hold his waist and bring him closer. Otabek’s hands feel so great against his skin and Yuri can’t help but wonder what they’d feel like elsewhere. The kiss gets heated quickly, but as soon as it starts to feel like it’s really going somewhere, Otabek breaks the kiss.

“What are you doing Saturday?” Otabek asks.

Yuri racks his brains. “Mila said something about going shopping.”

“Cancel it.”

“Why?”

“Because,” Otabek says, leaning in for another quick kiss, “I’m taking you out.”

Yuri grins. “Okay,” he agrees. Otabek kisses him again, and then they part ways, separated by a wooden fence as they walk up to their respective front doors.

“Mila, we’re not going shopping on Saturday anymore,” Yuri announces once he’s through the door.

“Why?” comes the reply from the kitchen.

“Because,” Yuri says as he starts to make his way upstairs, “I have a date.”

There’s a yell from the kitchen that Yuri doesn’t catch. His bedroom door closes behind him and he kicks off his boots, then starts taking off his clothes to get ready for bed.

He’s still wearing Otabek’s jacket, he notes with a smile.


	3. anywhere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *crawls out of hole after three months* hi, i'm back
> 
> sorry it's been so long, hope you all enjoy! and thank you for all the encouraging comments on the last chapter, it really means the world to me <3
> 
>  
> 
> [playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/1137864142/playlist/2UV6BTJFvH5ya7uUgjkmCH?si=TQHhsaoVThauras2M_XDgw)

Yuri walks out of the house on Saturday morning to find Otabek sitting at the end of the drive on a motorbike, a spare helmet in his hands. He’s also, Yuri notes, wearing a different leather jacket, because the one Yuri took after they went out on Thursday has now taken up residence on the coat hooks on the back of Yuri’s door and is showing no signs of moving.

“What’s this?” Yuri asks as he walks down the drive.

“A bike,” Otabek replies with a smirk.

Yuri rolls his eyes. “I can see that.” He takes the helmet from Otabek’s outstretched hands and puts it on. “Is it yours?”

Otabek nods. “She lives in the garage most of the time.” Yuri can’t say he’s surprised, it looks like a very nice bike, washed and polished to the extent that it looks like it just rolled off the factory floor, and leaving it out on the street in the slightly run-down student area of the city they live on probably wouldn’t be the best move. “I thought I’d surprise you.”

“Well consider me surprised, Altin,” Yuri says, swinging a leg over the bike and sitting down. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see when we get there,” Otabek replies. “Hold on.”

Yuri wraps his arms round Otabek’s waist as Otabek kicks up the kickstand and pulls away from the kerb, speeding up down the street. The engine thrums beneath them and the wind whips through Yuri’s hair, their local high street passing in a blur of a hundred different colours and shapes. Otabek heads out of the city and towards the ring road, weaving in and out of the heavy Saturday traffic effortlessly.

Otabek drives for about an hour, the traffic thinning as they get out of the city and onto smaller roads in towns where everything seems sleepy and peaceful rather than the constant hustle and bustle of city life.

Otabek eventually pulls to a stop in a small car park off a secluded side road, gravel crunching under the tyres. The place is surrounded by tall trees, and a wooden lodge that looks like it’s a café or visitor centre of some sort sits in one corner, a couple of people sitting at one of the outdoor tables eating breakfast.

“We’re here?” Yuri asks, taking off his helmet. He’s a little underwhelmed so far, but he tries not to let it show too much.

“Yeah,” Otabek replies. “This way.”

To his surprise, Otabek doesn’t lead Yuri to the café like he’d expected. Instead, he heads towards the trees, walking down a path Yuri hadn’t even noticed when he first looked at them. The wood isn’t too thick and it soon starts thinning out, the path opening out onto the beach of the most beautiful lake Yuri has ever seen.

“Oh wow,” he says as he takes in the scene. The lake is big, stretching far into the distance, forest lining one side and hills climbing up from the other. The lake ripples in the slight breeze, sunlight shining off the water and waves lapping at the shore.

“Yeah, it’s not too bad here,” Otabek chuckles as they sit down on a rock together. “There’s actually a proper visitor centre on the other side of the lake but it’s always so busy with day trippers and school parties and whatever else. It’s so much nicer here.”

“Not too bad? Beka, it’s beautiful.” Yuri takes out his phone and starts taking photos, filling up his camera roll with countless pictures of the scenery and Otabek sitting on the rock, some candid, some more posed, some selfies taken on Insta stories with animal ear filters. Yuri thinks they’re cute, Otabek… remains to be persuaded.

“But look at that one with the cat ears! Don’t you think it suits me?”

“Well yeah it suits you, I just don’t think it suits me much.”

Yuri mutters something about that being nonsense and then they move on, wandering along the lake shore together. At some point, Otabek reaches for Yuri’s hand, intertwining their fingers together. Yuri looks down at their hands but doesn’t say anything, a simple smile tugging at his lips instead as they continue their walk along the shore.

* * *

Spending time together like this away from university and city life is so peaceful, serene. It's amazing that you don't have to go that far to get out of the hecticness of city life and Yuri really loves it as he and Otabek walk around the lake together. At some points, the path meanders back into the trees again, and they watch as the sunlight hits the leaves and makes dappled patterns on the forest floor. Yuri gives his phone to Otabek and makes him act as a personal photographer for a while, and it's fun, both of them laughing as Yuri makes ridiculous poses leaning up against one of the trees. 

After a while, they head back to the cafe. The place has a real rustic feel, hand carved furniture and mismatched crockery all adding to the charm. On the back wall, there's a selection of paintings of the lake or the cafe, each one evidently painted by a different artist due to the dramatic changes in style. They eat lunch chatting about friends and family, Yuri learning that Otabek comes from a fairly large family and is the second oldest of four with two sisters and one brother, Otabek learning that Yuri only has his grandfather left. 

"Mila and Georgi are basically family at this point, though," Yuri says as he jabs his fork into the bowl of salad in front of him. "We all grew up on the same street back home and once we all got to uni we decided to share a house together."

"It's so nice that even after growing up together you all decided to come to the same uni and live together," Otabek replies. "I moved to uni not knowing anyone at all. I was lucky in the fact that I was in halls with JJ and Leo first year and we just all clicked and decided to move in together. It was a really big step to take on my own, but I'm so glad I did."

"It was worth it, then?"

"Definitely." Otabek takes a sip of his drink. "I love my course and I love DJing and I love the city. And," he says, smirking, "I guess you're not too bad either."

"Not too bad?" Yuri repeats. There's a scowl across his face but he's also fighting back the giggles, laughter threatening to bubble to the surface at any given moment. "You're something else, Altin."

"You know what I mean!" 

"Yeah," Yuri says with a smile. "You're not too bad yourself, you know."

Otabek reaches out to hold Yuri's hand across the table, smiling himself. He doesn't say anything in reply. 

He doesn't have to.

-

Yuri gets back from the lake on an absolute high, walking through the front door with a secretive smile on his face.

"What's that look for?" Mila asks, heading from the kitchen to the living room with a bowl of pesto pasta in hand. "You had a good time, I take it?"

"The best."

"Aww," Mila coos. "Well don't just stand there with a stupid grin on your face, come over here and tell me all about it!"

* * *

**yuri_plisetsky**

[various photos from the lake]

Tagged: @otabek-altin

Liked by  **otabek-altin, mila.babicheva**  and  **104 others**  

 **yuri_plisetsky**  cute date at the lake <3

 **otabek-altin**  <3 <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: when I first typed Yuri's insta handle I typed it "yuri-altin" I think I got a bit ahead of myself there
> 
> [twt](https://twitter.com/pllsetskyonice)


	4. all night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had an idea, ran with it, and this is the result
> 
> Enjoy ❤️️

Yuri's in the middle of a lecture on modern dance when he gets a text from Otabek. As subtly as he can, he pulls his phone out of his pocket and reads the message.

**10:32 So I just got an interesting email**

**10:32 Eros want me to DJ there**

**10:32 On a Saturday**

**10:33 Yura I can't believe this it's such a massive opportunity**

10:34 That's amazing! Eros is one of clubs in the gay village, right?

**10:34 Yeah I went there in first year a lot, can't believe I'm actually going to playing there**

10:35 I bet! Do you know when yet?

**10:36 Not yet, I expect it'll be fairly soon though, maybe in the next couple of weeks**

10:37 So exciting! I'll make sure I'm there!

* * *

Yuri is over at Otabek's a couple of days later when he gets the email. Eros want Otabek to DJ there a week on Saturday, midnight till closing. Being the weekend, it'll be busy, and Eros is a much bigger club than GOLDEN to start with anyway. It's the biggest club in the gay village, famous for its dance floor that changes colour and the scantily clad male dancers it has a few times a week. One of the dancers is even rumoured to be the owner's husband, but Yuri's not sure how much truth there is in that.

Otabek fires off a quick reply, saying he's happy with everything before getting up from where he's been lying on the bed with Yuri and going over to his desk. Unlike other students whose desks are covered with lecture notes, abandoned bits of scrap paper and a plate from last night's dinner, Otabek's is covered in his DJ equipment, tall speakers sitting either side of the desk on the bare floorboards of his room. 

"Suppose I'd better get to work on the setlist," Otabek mumbles, stretching in his chair, arms above his head. Yuri sees the muscles in his arms shift underneath the skin, straining against the tight black t-shirt Otabek is wearing, and feels his mouth go dry. 

"Yeah," Yuri eventually manages to reply. "Have you got any ideas?"

"Mm-hm." Otabek is clicking around on his laptop, doing some stuff on his mixing software. "I've got to make sure I've got room for requests and stuff but apart from that it should be fairly standard stuff." He plugs his headphones in and turns a few dials on his decks. "You don't have to stay, you know."

"I know." Yuri curls up in a more comfortable position on Otabek's bed against the cushions, pulling the blanket up so it covers his feet. "I want to, though."

* * *

Yuri's been to Eros a few times before now, mostly when it has its super cheap student nights on a Tuesday, so being there on a Saturday is a very different experience. It's fairly quiet when they walk through the gay village to the club, but it's only eleven, early to be out on a Saturday. Still, there's a fair amount of people in the street and smoking areas, and a few drag queens standing talking together. When they get to the club, a security guard by the name of Takeshi leads them through the club and through an 'EMPLOYEES ONLY' door to the dressing rooms and offices and storage rooms. There, Takeshi knocks on a door and someone calling "Come in!" quickly follows, so they enter the room.

"The DJ's here, boss," Takeshi says, before leaving to go back to working on the entrance.

"Wonderful! Otabek Altin, right?" he reaches across the desk to give Otabek a handshake. "Victor Nikiforov, I run the club. I must say, for someone who's only been in the city two years, you've built up quite the reputation for yourself. And who's your friend?"

"This is Yuri, my boyfriend," Otabek says. "I hope it's okay that I brought him."

"Oh yes, of course, the more the merrier!" Victor gets up from his desk chair, slipping his arms into the suit jacket that's been hanging across the back of it. "Let me show you around so you can get your bearings. Yuri, you're welcome to tag along, or you can go and see Chris and Seung Gil the bar, I'm sure they'll fix you a drink or two on the house. Just say Victor sent you."

Yuri decides to tag along, for now, walking behind Victor and Otabek as Victor points out each of the rooms. "This is the dressing room, the dancers are on tonight but that doesn't really affect you in any way." He knocks on the door and it opens, revealing a Japanese guy dressed in a metallic pair of tight-fitting shorts and not much else, one eyelid covered in perfectly blended sparkly eyeshadow and the other bare.

"V-Victor!" he says. "I wasn't expecting -"

"Just showing the new DJ around, my love, nothing to worry about," Victor says. "Dance well tonight!"

From inside the room, there's a disembodied shout of "Come on, Yuuri, we need to finish your makeup!" and, a couple of moments later, the door opening to reveal another of the dancers. "Oh, it's your husband, never mind. Evening, Victor."

"Hello, Phichit," Victor greets. "Anyway, we must move on, see you later!"

As Victor takes Otabek to the DJ booth, Yuri makes his way to the bar. The club is slowly starting to fill up, but it's still no difficulty getting a spot at the bar. One of the bartenders makes his way over to him, a tall guy with blond hair wearing a tight white short sleeved dress shirt. Yuri presumes that this is Chris, rather than the smaller Asian guy down the other end of the bar. "What can I get you?"

"Double vodka coke," Yuri replies. "Oh, and Victor sent me."

"Oh?" Chris says as he pours two measures of vodka into the plastic cup. "Who are you here with?"

"Otabek Altin, he's DJing here tonight."

"Fair enough." Chris pushes the drink across the bar to Yuri. "You're on the house tonight."

“Thanks,” Yuri says. He stands at the bar and sips his drink, scrolling through social media on his phone as Chris serves other customers, quickly pouring out shots and vodka mixers and pulling pints for a while until the line dies down and he makes his way back over to Yuri again.

“You in uni, then?” Chris asks, having to yell a bit to make himself heard over the noise of the music coming from the speakers. It’s getting louder now, the club well on the way to filling up and the music is playing so loud Yuri is sure he can feel the bass vibrating through the floor.

“Yeah,” Yuri replies as he finishes off his drink.

Chris picks up the cup and starts to make Yuri another drink. “What are you studying?”

“Dance,” Yuri says, and Chris stops pouring out the vodka. There’s a glint in his eye Yuri isn’t quite sure he can trust, and then Chris is beckoning Seung Gil over from the other end of the bar. They talk amongst themselves and Chris has an almost evil looking grin on his face. “What?” Yuri demands.

“You dance?” Seung Gil asks, leaning over the bar towards Yuri.

“Yeah, why?”

“You want to dance tonight?”

“I mean, I thought I would probably end up on the dancefloor at some point, but –”

“No,” Chris cuts him off. “Do you want to _dance_?”

“Oh.” It dawns on Yuri that they don’t mean on the dancefloor with the rest of the club goers, but on the stages where Phichit and the other Yuuri will be dancing soon. There are poles up on the stages too, and Yuri hasn’t pole danced since the summer before he started uni when he worked five nights a week in a strip club to save up money. He’s not even sure he can remember the moves. “I mean…”

“You don’t have to,” Seung Gil quickly clarifies. “You can say no.”

“But just imagine the look on your boyfriend’s face,” Chris says. The glint is in his eyes again, and Yuri imagines what Otabek would be like if he looked up and saw Yuri dancing and – yeah, maybe that’s an idea he can get on board with.

“Okay,” he finds himself saying. “But I’ll probably only do it for a bit.”

* * *

‘only for a bit’ turns into the entire night. After he’s been led to the dressing rooms and Yuuri and Phichit have put him in an outfit of shimmery shorts, a sheer top that seems to have a glittery thread of some sort running through and a strappy pair of heels and done his makeup, they’re taken to the stages. It’s gone midnight, which means Otabek is playing, but when Yuri looks towards the DJ booth, Otabek’s attention is completely focussed on the decks and what he’s doing.

Yuuri and Phichit start dancing first. Yuri’s never been to Eros when the dancers have been there before, and he’s amazed at the ethereal beauty they seem to hold even though they’re dancing in quite a sexual manner.  Yuri’s sure he’ll be able to pull it off, but it doesn’t stop him from any less nervous. It’s been a while since he danced in public like this.

A few songs later, they beckon him onto the stage. Once he’s up there, he takes a deep breath, wraps his hand around the pole, and spins around a few times. From there, muscle memory seems to overtake, his body moving in ways he thought he’d forgotten how to. He loses himself in the music and dancing, spinning around until the lights of the club seem a blur and the vodka coke Chris made him at the start of the night feels like a mere memory.

He even forgets for a while that Otabek is DJing until he happens to glance over to the DJ booth at the same time Otabek looks out over the club. Their eyes meet, Otabek blinking several times like he can’t believe what he’s seeing. Yuri smirks and goes back to dancing, and he dances until the crowd in the club starts to thin out again and Yuuri taps him on the shoulder, saying that their shift is over.

“You did so well!” Yuuri says when they’re back in the dressing room. “I bet people couldn’t tell you hadn’t danced with us before.”

“Yeah, you were amazing,” Phichit says with a tired smile, unfastening his heels and collapsing onto the couch. He stretches and yawns. “I think I’m getting old, Yuuri, why am I so tired? It’s only three.”

“Maybe if you didn’t have sex with your boyfriend before you go on shift –”

“That was one time! At least I’m not fucking the boss –”

“He’s my _husband_!”

Their bickering is cut off by a knock at the door, said husband asking if it’s alright for him to come in. After a confirmation, Victor walks into the room and practically beams when he sees Yuri sitting in one of the chairs. “Oh good, Yuri, you’re still here. Do you want a job?”

“Do I want a – what?” Yuri’s mind blanks completely, and he stares at Victor in disbelief.

“I’m being serious! The customers loved you, Chris said he had several at the bar asking who, and I quote, ‘the cute new blond dancer was’. He did, of course, say that you were taken, but you were wonderful, Yuri, and I’d love to see you dance here again.”

Yuri doesn’t reply, his mouth opening and closing several times but no sounds coming out. “I…” he eventually manages, but he doesn’t even know how to end that sentence.

“You don’t have to make a decision right now.” Victor pulls a business card out the inside pocket of his jacket and hands it over to Yuri. “There’s my card, just let me know.”

Victor swans out of the room in a blur of silver and expensive cologne, and Phichit turns to Yuri, suddenly wide awake again. “Oh my god, you’ve got to say yes!” he squeals. “Please say yes, please say yes! And what’s your Instagram?”

* * *

It’s gone five by the time Yuri meets Otabek. He’s eerily silent in the Uber back, hardly saying anything apart from exchanging a few pleasantries with the driver. When the car pulls up outside their driveways, Yuri starts to walk up his own drive, but Otabek calls him back.

“Wait,” he says. “Come over.”

They’re kissing as soon as they’re inside, Otabek ditching his stuff by the door, lifting Yuri up and carrying him to his room, practically throwing him down on the bed. “You looked so fucking hot when you were dancing,” Otabek says between the long kisses and stripping the both of the them, “I nearly fucked my set up when I looked up and saw you there, fuck.”

It’s not how Yuri imagined their first time would be. It’s fast and frantic and kind of awkward and fumbling at times because it’s nearly six am now and they’ve both been up all night, but as Otabek bottoms out properly inside him for the first time, he realises he wouldn’t have had it any other way.


End file.
